Toy figure



Oct. 24, 1933. KALLUS 1,932,216

TOY FIGURE Filed Feb. 4, 1953 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 24, 1933 I Y i Y d I uairso STATE-S PATENT OFFICE FIGURE v Joseph L. Kallus, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application February 4, 1933. Serial No. 655,220

v3 Claims. (01. 46-,-40)

My invention relates to toy figures such as together in any manner to provide the desired dolls, toy animals and the like, and more pararticulation or other arrangement. The detailed ticularly to toy figures in which the limbs and construction of the body 10 and head 1115 of no other members are jointed and movable relaconsequenceas such detailed. arrangement is no t tiv ely toeach other. The object of the invenpart of the invention; the same is true of the to tion is to improve the construction of thelimbs arm members 12 excepting as qualified and point- 1 or other members of the toy figure with a view ed out in the description hereinafter. If the to increasing the efficiency thereof and to mabody is made of resilient or equivalent nonterially reduce the cost of production. The inrigid material and is to include the property of ,-10 vention contemplates further the provision of being yielding to more closely approximate the 65 an improved and novel means for maintaining natural body which it is intended to simulate, the several parts of the toy figure in the desired or to provide other predetermined characterisassembled condition and to increase the efficiency tics in the toy figure, suitable provision may be of the connecting means at a reduction in the made to provide rigidity at such points whereit cost of manufacture and assembling the parts. is required. j 70 Other objects will appear from the description In toy figures of the kind under discussion, the hereinafter and the features ofnovelty will be bodies, at predetermined portions thereof, are pointed out in the claims. shaped and constructed in a manner to provide In the accompanying drawing, which illusfor the desired adjustments and movements of 2o trates examples of the invention withoutv dethe various. sections, and more p r u rly the 75 fining its limits, Fig. 1 is an elevation, partly in limb members thereof, in a manner correspondsection, of a doll embodying the novel features; ing to the natural movements of the parts which "Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a leg memsuch sections and members are intended to simuber constructed in accordance with the invention; late. Thus the body 10 of the doll, in the illus- Fig. 3 is a detail'section on the line 3-.-3 of Fig. trated, example, is tapered at its lower portion so 1; Fig. 4 is a fragmentary elevationof said leg to provide a pelvis po having downwardly member showing the construction thereof; Fig. and inwardly converging external surfaces 13 in 5 is a fragmentary view of said leg member in which the leg sockets 14 or their equivalent are an assembled condition looking at rightangles formed'; in the event that the body 10 ishollow,

' to Fig. 4; and Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary as in the illustrated example, these sockets 14 85 section illustrating a novel detail of the fastenmay extend completely through the walls of said ing means whereby the parts of the toy figure body as shown. This arrangement and construcare connected in an assembled condition. tion of the body 10 is not in itself new and per se For convenience of illustration and descripconstitutes no part of the instant invention.

tion I have shown the novel arrangements em- The toy figure, or specifically the dollof the 90 1 40 corresponding advantages in toy figures of other tively indentify the same. In the doll, as illusbodied in a doll for which the invention is parexample shown in the drawing, further comprises ticularly adapted; it is to be distinctly underl m m r W c in all are v e stood however that this is only an example and with sections '15, referred to for convenience of that thenovel features may be embodied with description, as upper sections in order to positypes. 1 trated, the leg] membersfurther consist of knee In the illustrated example the jointed doll sections 16, lower legsections 17, and feet seccomprises a body 10 shown of hollow form and tions 18 fitted together to provide an articulated constructed of any suitable material, which is construction. It is to be understood that the de- 5 either inherently rigid or, if flexible or yielding, tail construction of the leg members or their is made rigid at predetermined'points or in its equivalent may be difierent from that shown in entirety in any conventional manner as may be the drawing, such construction being dependent necessary to effect a natural or other predeteruponthe type of the doll or other toy figure for mined appearance. A customary head 11- is which they are designed; in all forms the leg mounted on the body 10 or on a neck member members or their equivalent include portions 105 a pluralityof relatively movable sections fitted to be adjusted: to make possible other postures thereof .in any well known way, and said body which correspond to and are intended to be 10, is further provided with arm sockets adapted covered by the designation, upper sections. To to receive the arm members 12, the latter being permit the doll to assume a sitting position, and

constructed, for, instance as shown in Fig. -1, of to enable the leg members or their equivalent in the doll or other toy figures, the upper sections 15 are provided at their upper or equivalent ends with hemispherical projections 19 adapted to be seated in the sockets 14, which projections 19 may be truncated as shown although this is optional and not necessary; in addition the sections 15 in order to provide the desired range of adjustment in a life-like manner are, required to include relatively inclined surfaces 15 corresponding more or less, in inclination at least, to the surfaces 13. The upper sections 15 and the sections 19 thereof may further include such other features as are commonly found in the corresponding parts of toy figures, or may beprovided with special features incidental to the toy figures for which said sections and projections are designed. The projections 19 and the sockets 14 of the illustrated doll correspond to the hip joints of a human being and function in a manner to simulate the action of such hip joints. It will be obvious that the projections 19 and the sockets 14in which they are seated may correspond in location and function to other joints of the human body or to parts of the body of such other natural animal intended to be simulated.

In orderto obtain the desired results, the upper leg sections 15 and their equivalents, have heretofore generally been produced by molding, and accordingly have been made of a suitable composition or an equivalent material capable of being molded, which becomes hard in its final form. The production of such sections by molding is expensive and results in the formation of external seams which unless the evidence thereof is removed affect the appearance of the sections; in addition the character of the composition or other moldable material is such that considerable loss results from breakage and ,other damage in the production of the sections in question. To overcome these objections and to pro- .duce the sections in an efficient and economical manner, the sections 15, in the instant case, are made of wood, or other material capable of being turned, and consist of two elements 15 and 15 independently made and then connected with each other. The main or thigh element 15? is preferably made by turning the wood or its equivalent to proper form and providing said element 16* with the relatively inclined surface 15*. The auxiliary or joint element 15 is made by turning form of a complete sphere, which is then cut in halfto provide hemispherical elements 15 each of which is fastened in surface engagement with I the inclined surface 15 of a given section 15 with the major axis of the joint element 15 perpendicular to said inclined surface 15,; any suitable and convenient means may be used foifastening the elements 15 in place, the illustrated example showing nails 15 as the fastening devices whereby the elements 15 are secured to the elements 15 The turning operation of the wood or its equivalent is so carried out that the hemispherical elements 15 will have plane surfaces, the diameters of which correspond to the; trans- .verse width of the inclined surfaces 15 When fixed in place each element 15 is located in coterminous registry with oneend portion of the associated inclined surface 15 thus leaving the: remainder of said surface free and exposed as shown in Figs. 2 and 5; if necessary the sections subsequent to the attachment of the elements ,22 which clamp and secure the cords or the like Heretofore the anchorages for such elastic cords have presented difficulties which have increased the cost of production of the toy figures and added to the time required therein. In the instant case these diificulties and objections have been overcome by providing the elastic cords 20 or their equivalents with tubular metallic sleeves or gromets 21 into and preferably through which the free ends of said cords 20 or the like extend as shown in Figs. 2 and 6; the sleeves or gromets 21 may be fastened in place on said cords '20 or their equivalent in any convenient manner as by suitably punching said sleeves or gromets 21 to provide inwardly extendingprojections or lugs 20 against withdrawal from said sleeves or gromets21 as illustrated in Fig. 6. In the form shown in the drawing the sleeves or gromets 21 are provided at one end with circular flanges 23 of a diameter greater than the external diameter of the gromets 21.

The utility and operation of this novel arrangement is shown in the illustrated example in connection with the leg members of the doll shown U H in the drawing; it will be understood that it will function and operate in a similar manner in connection with other parts of the doll, as for instance the arm members 12 thereof, or in connection'with the elements comprising the parts of other types of toy figures.

In the assembled condition of the doll shown in the drawing the flanges 23 of the grornets or sleeves 21 are located in recesses 24 formed in the bottoms of the feet sections 18 so as to engage H the bottoms of said recesses 24 as shown in Fig. {[20 2; the tubular sleeves or gromets 21 projecting its from said flanges 23 are fitted in and extend through openings 25 formed in said feet sections 18 communicating with openings '26 with which said sections are provided. From the 1'25 sleeves Eor gromets 21 the cords 20 extend through a wood unit or its equivalent, for instance, to the located in the respective recesses 24 thereof; the cord or the like 20 passes upwardly through the leg members and body of the doll and over a conventional fastening device, such as a hook,

provided in the customary manner interiorly of the head 11. The arrangement and proportion of the parts is such that, in the assembled condition of the doll, the cord 20 or its equivalent is under tension and thus develops a pulling force between the flanges 23 of the sleeves or gromets 21,

in combination with the bottoms of the recesses '24, and the aforesaid fastening device interiorly of the head 11, whereby the leg members 15, 16, 1'7 andlS, the'body 10 and the head ll are movably held together in an assembled condition with 15 may be finished in any customary manner a maximum of efficiency and in a simple manner. The novel means described above with respect to the illustrated doll, obviously will operate in the same manner and with equal efliciency for holding other parts of the doll, and the component parts of other toy figures, together in an assembled condition, and in all cases will permit lifelike or other predetermined movements and adjustments of the various parts Without interference. The novel means for anchoring the elastic cords 20 or their equivalent also permits repairs and replacements to be made in the-toy figures with a minimum of effort and at a minimum of expense, and entirely avoids the necessity for using nails or the like and other more or less complicated devices for, effecting the desired anchorages; at the same time the novel anchorages do not affect the appearance of the toy figure as such anchorages are substantially invisible in all normal positions of the toy figure and even when visible do not objectionably intrude themselves upon the eye of the observer.

With the novel arrangements set forth herein it is possible to cheaply and efficiently produce the upper leg sections or equivalent parts of jointed dolls and other articulated toy figures from wood or equivalent material by turning, and

to avoid the complication, loss by breakage and relative reduction in cost, time of production and degree of'skill required in the manufacture of such toy figures.

Various changes in the specific forms shown.

and described may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. In an articulated toy figure including a body provided with sockets and limb members in jointed connection with said body, that improvement which comprises an upper limb section consisting of a main element of turned wood having an inclined end surface, and an independent hemispherical joint element of turned wood having its fiat surface secured in surface engagement with said inclined surface, said joint element being adapted to fit a socket of said body.

2. In a jointed doll including a body provided Withleg sockets and leg members in jointed connection with said body, that improvement which comprises an upper leg section consisting of a thigh element of turned wood having an inclined end surface, and an independent hemispherical joint element of turned wood having a plane surface corresponding to the width of said inclined surface, said plane surface being fastened in surface engagement with said inclined surface in coterminous registry with a portion thereof, and said joint member being adapted to fit a leg socket of said body.

3. A leg member for dolls comprising a thigh element of turned wood having an inclined end surface, and an independent hemispherical joint element of turned wood having its plane surface secured in surface engagement with said inclined surface in coterminous registry with an end portion thereof.

JOSEPH L. KALLUS. 

